Shijie Sheng

Biography

Shijie Sheng was one of the co-discovers of the tumor suppressor gene maspin, and she continues to be a leader in the maspin field. Through her research over
the last 17 years, she has published a total of 58 manuscripts on maspin, 37 of which were original reports. Together with her colleagues, She has made a number
of breakthroughs in the study of the biological functions and underlying molecular mechanisms of maspin.

Abstract

Accumulated evidence demonstrates an anti-tumor effect of maspin on tumor growth, invasion and metastasis. The molecular
mechanism underlying these biological functions of maspin is thought to be through histone deacetylase inhibition. Our
research in our laboratory led to a working model that epithelial-specific maspin inhibits different serine protease-like targets
in different subcellular compartments, and limits tumor cell plasticity that is microenvironment-dependent. The effects of
maspin on the homeostasis of epithelial cells further direct anti-tumor stromal reactivities, including basement membrane-like
extracellular matrix assembly, inhibition of angiogenesis, and anti-tumor immune response. This presentation covers several
recent advancements including the identification of the biological function and regulation of mapsin compartmentalized in the
nucleus, the effect of epithelial maspin on immune reactivity in tumor microenvironment, and the stratification of tumor cell
stemness and drug sensitivity by maspin. These new insights may underlie the clinical observation that maspin correlates with
better diagnosis and prognosis, and suggest a unique window of maspin-based therapeutic strategy.